Video from Mongla Shared as Illegal Bangladeshi Nationals Leaving India via West Bengal
According to the announcement by the Election Commission of India (ECI), the process of ‘Intensive Revision’ of the voter list, widely known as SIR (Special Intensive Revision), began in 12 states and union territories of the country on October 28. As part of this, the ‘Intensive Revision of the Voter List‘ program also started in West Bengal on November 4. It is known that there is a concern that many people’s names might be excluded from the voter list if they fail to present the necessary documents during this process. Central leaders of the ruling BJP have claimed that many alleged Bangladeshi infiltrators in states like West Bengal have included their names in the voter list. They assert that ‘illegal Bangladeshis’ and ‘Rohingyas’ will be excluded once the ‘Intensive Revision’ takes place. Against this backdrop, a video has recently been circulated by a few Indian social media accounts, claiming that the BSF has reported a significant rise in illegal Bangladeshi nationals leaving India through West Bengal.
See the video circulated on Facebook here।
See the same video circulated on Instagram here।
Fact Check
The Rumor Scanner Team’s investigation reveals that the video in question is not related to the departure of illegal Bangladeshi nationals from India. In reality, a video showing a crowd at the Mongla Ghat for river crossing in Bagerhat has been circulated with the false claim.
While the original video could not be found during the investigation, a recently circulated video was discovered on a Facebook profile named HM Raju Hawlader. A comparative analysis of the location in this video matched the location seen in the viral video.
The caption of the Facebook video indicates that the footage is of the Mongla Ghat area.
Rumor Scanner found multiple other videos on the same Facebook profile showing the same ghat (1, 2).
A recent report in the national daily Ajker Patrika states that over 10,000 workers from Mongla in Bagerhat and Dacope Upazila in Khulna risk their lives daily, crossing two rivers by trawler to reach their workplaces in the Mongla EPZ and Mongla Port Industrial Area. Workers from Dacope must cross the Poshur River, and workers from Mongla must cross the Mongla River to reach the industrial zone. Mongla has one trawler ghat (landing) for passenger crossing, and Dacope has three on the Poshur River bank. Every morning and evening, these trawlers cross the two rivers dangerously overloaded with passengers. Passengers also cross this way, risking their lives to reach work on time.
So, the video has no connection to illegal Bangladeshi nationals leaving India.
Therefore, a video from a crowded river crossing at Mongla Ghat is being circulated with the claim that it shows illegal Bangladeshi nationals leaving India; this claim is completely false.
Sources
- HM Raju Hawlader: Facebook Video